“I think all people have this natural bias in thinking in ‘or,'
in absolutes, that something is either good or bad, we should do
it this way or that way, and it’s become a crutch.”

Many people are trapped in the single-mindedness of thinking in
absolutes, which Davies calls “the tyranny of ‘or.’” Such a rigid
mentality is unnecessarily restricting, he says, and most don’t
realize that when given the choice between two ideas, solutions
to a problem, or even job candidates, sometimes you don’t have to
choose at all.

Davies gives the example of looking at two options to raise
capital for a new company. Rather than picking this option or
that option, if you pursue both you might find that each option
gives you different outcomes and you would limit these options by
having to choose between the two.

“A lot of times you get presented with choices, and a lot of
times you can substitute ‘and’ for ‘or’, and the options are much
better.”

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